stinky {mildew?} dreadlocks

damn, lice and mildew in 13 months! that is a bad hand girl, i'm sorry

i don'thave any more advice on themilew removal, but if it was me, i would reconsider the blow dryer. if you're walking around in the sticky florida humidity with dreads that stay wet for longer than 24 hours (and obviously they are stillwet when you go to bed at night), then yeah, you're going to get mildew... and it seems like it would probably keep coming back if your routine stays the same.

after i wash my hair i squeeze out the excess water, put it up in a towel for five minutes, squeeze the hair with the towel a whole bunch, and then blow dry it for maybe 5 minutes until the dripping temporarily stops. i go about my daily business, thenprobably 10minutes later when it starts to drip,i go back and blow dry again for a few minutes. next time it takes a little longer to start dripping again, so gradually you're just blow drying less and less until it's pretty much dry. i only have to blow dry within the first 1 1/2 or 2 hours after washing. it's not a pain in the ass, doesn't disrupt my family life whatsoever, is way more comfortable than walking around with heavy wet hair, and mydreads are in very healthy condition (plus, they smell "amazing")!

oh yeah,have youtried areally dilluted version of the baking soda rinse every month or so? it might helpjust to remove all that crap that dreads just naturally collect... i'd be pretty desperate if i were you!

updated by @jessica-eva-eva-lovelocks: 07/23/15 07:05:37AM

Please please please don't use bleach on your head/hair. We don't use this on our floor or clothes or anything else and would never use it on our bodies. Thanks for chiming in, but I shudder to think of someone actually taking this advice! For what is is worth--Grapeseed extract {GSE} is an antimicrobial, antibacterial safe for consumption product that will kill mold, mildew, spores, and the likes. I have decided that I need to apply a mixture of ACV, GSE, and lavender EO {must be essential oil not perfume or fragrance oil} + water to my hair and then let it dry in the sun all day. Then look into ways to get them dry faster {less than 40 hours}.As far as my hair not being clean--that isn't the issue at hand. My hair and scalp are clean. The stink is distinctly MILDEW. We don't use chemical detergents in our house for anything and are clean. This problem came from daily swimming in the mountain springs and not getting dried in between + thick dread lumps and living in a rainforest for 3 months.SE--I can't use white vinegar because my daughter {2 years old} is allergic to gluten. White vinegar is made from wheat grains and has gluten and she likes to play with my hair and suck on it while nursing and she often takes showers with me--so, it is just a product we don't use in our house--ACV + GSE can be used in its place for everything I can think of and then I don't have to worry that she will have an ingestion issue and get ill Thanks for the suggestions all. I have a plan of action now.

Earthstudios said:

I also have noticed a mildew smell but only when my hair becomes slightly wet. It was worse about 4-5 months ago but started using regular shampoo again but I dilute it. I have a plastic bowl in the bathroom that I put small squeeze of shampoo in (oh about the size of a quarter) and then fill the bowl with water. I mix this around so its soapy suds and then pour that over my dreads and massage scalp. I'd have to say it helped 90% buthasn'tcured itcompletelybecause I can still get a hint of it when my hair becomes slightly wet. Next solution for me might be a mild bleach solution. I stress the mild aspect. Maybe one teaspoon per gallon or even less. Objective here is to kill mold spores. And might even go a different route than the bleach just depends. But I'll look to science as to what mold hates. Will report back once I learn about mold spores (the enemy) and decide on the most most natural approach toeliminatethem.

Earthstudios.

never had lice--the neighbor did, but it didn't come to our house

Eva Lovelocks said:

damn, lice and mildew in 13 months! that is a bad hand girl, i'm sorry

i don'thave any more advice on themilew removal, but if it was me, i would reconsider the blow dryer. if you're walking around in the sticky florida humidity with dreads that stay wet for longer than 24 hours (and obviously they are stillwet when you go to bed at night), then yeah, you're going to get mildew... and it seems like it would probably keep coming back if your routine stays the same.

after i wash my hair i squeeze out the excess water, put it up in a towel for five minutes, squeeze the hair with the towel a whole bunch, and then blow dry it for maybe 5 minutes until the dripping temporarily stops. i go about my daily business, thenprobably 10minutes later when it starts to drip,i go back and blow dry again for a few minutes. next time it takes a little longer to start dripping again, so gradually you're just blow drying less and less until it's pretty much dry. i only have to blow dry within the first 1 1/2 or 2 hours after washing. it's not a pain in the ass, doesn't disrupt my family life whatsoever, is way more comfortable than walking around with heavy wet hair, and mydreads are in very healthy condition (plus, they smell "amazing")!

oh yeah,have youtried areally dilluted version of the baking soda rinse every month or so? it might helpjust to remove all that crap that dreads just naturally collect... i'd be pretty desperate if i were you!

Thanks for sharing all the good info. We chose not to for many reasons, but the major one is that we are a gluten free household. All but ACV is made from distilled grains--most likely wheat or gluten containing, so we just stay away from anything but ACV. PLUS all the things you listed

Amy Lee said:

Distilled white vinegar sold in supermarkets are considered "dead" vinegars with none of the enzymes and other live factors that make raw, unpasteurized vinegars so valuable. Distilling removes the beneficial "mother" from the vinegar, thereby, destroying the powerful enzymes and life giving minerals such as potassium, phosphorus, natural organic sodium, magnesium, sulphur, iron copper, natural organic fluorine, silicon, trace minerals, pectin and other powerful nutrients. Also destroyed are natural malic and tartaric acids, which are important in fighting body toxins and inhibiting unfriendly bacteria growth.
she said she cant use white vinegar. not that she doesnt want to.

yes, THIS. I think this is the culprit. So, I am going to revisit how to get my hair to dry more efficiently after I figure out how to get rid of the mildew first :/ Thanks!

MRH said:

The most common cause of dread mildew is when the hair hasn't been given enough time to air dry before sleeping on it. You also live in an area with a lot of humidity which is probably contributing to the problem. I second the advice about the apple cider vinegar and tea tree to get rid of the the build up you already have and maybe buying a microfiber towel to dry your hair quicker. Good luck!

I cannot use TTO--i am allergic to it Thanks for the suggestion.

Rugby Girl said:

I found some information on killing mold and I think your best bet if you want to go the natural route is probably tea tree oil, but it's also the most expensive. It is antibacterial and antifungal so it should clear up the mildew. If I were in your place though I think I would go with SE's suggestion and use white vinegar which would be cheaper, and it's also very safe to use.

Here are some more tips:

http://blackmold.awardspace.com/kill-remove-mold.html

so here are three home formulas I know will clear up fungal build up:

The vodka rinse; mix 1 oz. 80-90 proof vodka to 7 oz. water and pour through hair. Let sit for about a minute and rise throughly.

Brew a strong peppermint tea and add the freshly squeezed juice of one lemon. Again let sit in hair for one to two minutes then rinse.

Finally, if you live near an Indian grocery check the shelves for neem or tulsi powder. Neem leaves come from the Indian gooseberry plant and is rich in antioxidants and antibacterial agents. Tulsi comes from a plant called "holy basil" that is more pungent then the basil we use in the west. Tulsi has strong anti-fungal and antimicrobial agents. Both are popular ayurvedic remedies for scalp and hair issues, you can use them together or individually. Essentially, you brew the powder like a tea and pour it over your head or you can mix a little bit of water with the powder to form a paste. You then apply it through your hair, let it sit a minute and then rinse.

neem or tulsi can be added to your shampoo or bs wash too

--
My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1

thanks!

MRH said:

so here are three home formulas I know will clear up fungal build up:

The vodka rinse; mix 1 oz. 80-90 proof vodka to 7 oz. water and pour through hair. Let sit for about a minute and rise throughly .

Brew a strong peppermint tea and add the freshly squeezed juice of one lemon. Again let sit in hair for one to two minutes then rinse.

Finally, if you live near an Indian grocery check the shelves for neem or tulsi powder. Neem leaves come from the Indian gooseberry plant and is rich in antioxidants and antibacterial agents. Tulsi comes from a plant called "holy basil" that is more pungent then the basil we use in the west. Tulsi has strong anti-fungal and antimicrobial agents. Both are popular ayurvedic remedies for scalp and hair issues, you can use them together or individually. Essentially, you brew the powder like a tea and pour it over your head or you can mix a little bit of water with the powder to form a paste. You then apply it through your hair, let it sit a minute and then rinse.

That's a little too far.

Panterra Caraway said:

DON'T SUGGEST SHAMPOO...SHE MIGHT BREAK A BLOOD VESSEL.

Desirae Rose said:

The few times my hair started to get that funky smell, I fixed it by doing a soak in warm-to-hot dishwashing liquid water, followed by another warm soak in vinegar (either regular clear vinegar or apple cider vinegar). Then a good long washing scrub session with shampoo and a long rinse.